The paradox of victory: social movement fields, adverse outcomes, and social movement success

Abstract

Recent work on social movement fields has expanded our view of the dynamics of social movements; it should also expand our thinking about social movement success. Such a broader view reveals a paradox: social movements often snatch defeat from the jaws of victory by narrowly targeting authorities with their actions instead of targeting the broader social movement field. Negative impacts from the wider social movement field can then reverse or overshadow initial victories. We distinguish between a social movement’s victory over the immediate target, and more lasting success that arises from shifting alignments in the broader social movement field. To test the predictive value of the distinction, we compare two very similar student-led social movements, both of which targeted university policies regarding sensitivity to race issues and changes in university personnel. One built a broad coalition of support that extended across its social movement field and was thereby able to institute durable change. The other did not, and despite its clear initial success, this protest movement produced consequences mainly adverse to its preferred outcomes. We demonstrate how pervasive this paradox is with examples from other U.S. protest outcomes and studies of revolutions. The paradox is resolved by focusing on changes in the entire social movement field. We thus argue that achieving, and understanding, lasting social movement success requires attention to the entire social movement field.

El El movimiento social embera-katío como resistencia frente a proyectos hidroenergéticos en Colombia

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The Religious Moderation in Kei Community, Maluku Indonesia: Upholds Local Wisdom, Religion, and Nationality as Vital Aspects

“…Zhu (2021) also reveals another social life paradox: if we encourage individual differences, we accumulate social wealth faster, but inequality becomes larger; if we prevent individual differences, we must accept social development more slowly or accumulate social wealth more slowly. Paradoxes can end when attention is focused in different directions, such as changes throughout ongoing social movements (Useem & Goldstone, 2021).…”

A win or a flop? Measuring mass protest successfulness in authoritarian settings

“…Despite the explosive growth of the nonviolent conflict literature, scholarly definitions of campaign ‘success’ are often at odds with societal realities. The same movements deemed wildly successful by scholars can appear to their home societies and even activists (Useem & Goldstone, 2022; Suh, 2014; Goodwin & Jasper, 2006; Giugni, McAdam & Tilly, 1999) as disappointments. The source of this disconnect is the exclusion of negative consequences from prevailing definitions of movement success.…”